Flameback coral shrimp (Stenopus pyrsonotus)

Classification (WoRMS)

Full classification as recorded by WoRMS: Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Arthropoda · Class: Malacostraca · Order: Decapoda · Family: Stenopodidae · Genus: Stenopus.

Accepted name: Stenopus pyrsonotus · Authority: Goy & Devaney, 1980 · Taxonomic status: accepted · AphiaID: 210367.

Source: World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=210367 (CC BY 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Biology and life history (SeaLifeBase)

Measured values published by SeaLifeBase for Stenopus pyrsonotus. Only fields the database actually holds for this species are shown; these are database values, not aquarium guidance.

Depth range: 0–129 m · Habitat zone: benthic.

Source: SeaLifeBase species summary (SpecCode 20703) — https://www.sealifebase.se/summary/Stenopus-pyrsonotus.html (CC BY-NC 3.0 — non-commercial use only). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Distribution and occurrence records (GBIF)

105 georeferenced occurrence records for Stenopus pyrsonotus are published through GBIF from 9 countries or marine areas. The map above plots 19 distinct locations from a sample of 105 records, omitting 3 inland records that carry an institution's coordinates rather than a collection site; it shows where the species has been observed and reported, not a modelled range.

Most records by country or area: United States of America (83); Réunion (8); French Polynesia (6); United States Minor Outlying Islands (2); Mayotte (2); Kenya (1); Marshall Islands (1); Mauritius (1); Niue (1).

Marine regions with a valid WoRMS distribution record: Mauritian Exclusive Economic Zone; Comoran Exclusive Economic Zone; New Caledonian Exclusive Economic Zone; French Polynesian Exclusive Economic Zone; Réunion Exclusive Economic Zone.

Source: GBIF Occurrence Search (taxonKey 5178715) — https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search?taxon_key=5178715&has_coordinate=true (records CC0 / CC BY); WoRMS distribution records (MarineRegions) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=210367 (CC BY 4.0); Natural Earth 110m basemap — https://www.naturalearthdata.com/ (public domain). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Description and natural history (Wikipedia)

Stenopus pyrsonotus is a fairly large stenopodidean shrimp, varying in length from about 30 to 70 mm. It has a slender compressed body covered with short blunt spines. The chelae are long and narrow, the cutting edge having several blunt, peg-like teeth. The rostrum, eyestalk and carapace are pinkish-white, while the third maxillipeds, and the coxa, basis, ischia and mer joints of the pereiopods are translucent pink. The long antennules and the other appendages are white, and the abdomen is white apart from a broad longitudinal red stripe on the dorsal surface. The telson is white while the uropods are pink.

Stenopus pyrsonotus occurs in the tropical Indo-West Pacific region, where it has been found in the Hawaiian archipelago and Mauritius. It is a benthic, cryptic species, and is found in coral reef systems, typically in crevices, in caves and under overhangs. It occurs at depths down to about 130 m.

Shrimps in this family are usually found in pairs and display elaborate courtship rituals. Several specimens of Stenopus pyrsonotus were found near a yellow-edged moray eel (Gymnothorax flavimarginatus), and it may be that this shrimp enters into a cleaning symbiosis with certain fish, as do several other members of its genus; this theory is supported by the showy white antennules and pincers, with which it may signal its availability.

Source: Wikipedia: Stenopus pyrsonotus — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stenopus_pyrsonotus (CC BY-SA 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.

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